Naomi Munakata

Origin

São Paulo, SP

Years active

1970–2020

Genres

classical music, choral singing

Instruments

piano, violin, harp

Biography

Naomi Munakata was an important Japanese-Brazilian conductor who exerted a profound influence on the classical music and choral scene in Brazil. Born in Hiroshima, she moved to Brazil in her childhood and began her musical studies very early, dedicating herself to the piano, singing in her father's choir, the violin, and the harp, before graduating in composition and conducting in São Paulo. Throughout her career, she took classes with great names in conducting and composition, such as Eleazar de Carvalho and Hans Joachim Koellreutter, establishing herself as one of the most respected figures in the field.

Her prominent career includes two decades leading the Osesp Choir, where she served as conductor and artistic director from 1995 until 2015, later receiving the title of honorary conductor of the institution. In addition, she directed the Municipal School of Music of São Paulo, the State Youth Choir, and commanded the program Vozes on Rádio Cultura FM. Starting in 2016, she assumed the principal conductorship of the Coral Paulistano Mário de Andrade, a position she held until the end of her life.

Naomi Munakata passed away in March 2020, a victim of COVID-19, leaving an inestimable legacy for Brazilian choral singing. Her dedication to classical music was widely recognized with awards from the São Paulo Association of Art Critics, international development grants in Sweden and Japan, and landmark recordings such as the album Canções do Brasil with the Osesp Choir. She was artistically connected to various Brazilian conductors and musicians, such as Eleazar de Carvalho and maestro Martinho Lutero Galati.